The how and why of the UCCC history
How we began… in 2017 I started the Group on Facebook to talk about a collaborative project that I had come up with called Melanie’s Global Make-And-Share Project. I decided to start a Facebook Group to talk about the project. The Group grew quickly and very soon it became obvious that the conversation was bigger than my project so I decided to open the Group up to a wider conversation and invite everyone working with up-cycled to textiles to share their ideas.
We continued to grow and today we have more than 233K members in countries all around the world. We believe our growth is due to the fact that our message has found its time and place in history. If not now… then when? If not us… then who?
Our members spend time with us because they enjoy sharing ideas for textile re-use in a friendly, judgment-free environment where everyone is encouraging. We believe encouragement is our super-power for amplifying our important message across the world.
The time has come for every individual on the planet to pause and consider our fiber footprint. Together, we can reduce the negative effects of our clothing consumer behavior on the planet, one inspired idea at a time.
Thank you for spending time with us.
when we asked our members what we do they said…
“It is easy, in today’s world, to feel helpless in the face of climate change and dwindling resources…this group and the creative and practical work that we do, empowers each of us to make a significant difference by challenging us to reuse, repurpose, and recycle.” Natalia Corres
“Exploring textiles, sharing discoveries.” Penny Ledger
“A worldwide effort of like minded, artistic, and eco-conscious people to help keep waste out of landfills and in turn hopefully reduce the need for fast fashion in the first place.” Terri Bennett-Moyer
“Turning cast offs into new more interesting and usable items.” Edie Boudreau
“The Upcycled Cloth Collective is a group who sees treasure in something others might give or throw away. It is a group that is inspired by fibers, colors, and possibilities. All of this while being extremely kind to our planet!” Patrice Thrives
“Repurposing existing fabrics into new creations.” Olga Schrichter
“Keeping textiles out of landfills by either repairing or repurposing.” Brianna Wolbers
“Creative and innovative people worldwide that have accepted the challenge to find ways to repurpose textiles. Taking lessons from generations past…utilizing old school skills and amazing talent, we reclaim and repurpose salvaged textiles into unique one-of-a-kind clothing, wearable accessories, and artwork which will highlight or intensify the individualist in anyone. We challenge you to embrace the cause and reduce waste in landfills by creating, supporting an artisan, or donating. Join the upcycling adventure and be a part of the amazing group of good stewards of our planet.” Julianne Anderson
“This is where old becomes new, the unwanted becomes cherished and useful, one stitch at a time.” Midge Johnson
“A place where like minded people come to display their craft , encourage each other, seek and offer help advice and encouragement. With the aim of giving new life to clothes and fabric which would be otherwise discarded and forgotten about.” Mary Collins
“All from the heart, soul, hands, mind, we behold the celebration /excitement of renewal and respect for where we came from and where we are going by taking our objects, cloths, yarns, threads mixing them up, throwing in a dash of sweet love and joy whilst we repurpose not only our things but our lives into wholeness again.” Roberta Colvin
We co-create inspiring learning experiences for textile up-cycling enthusiasts who want to learn new ways to re-use existing resources in inventive ways.
“For years now, I have daily checked in to see what’s new in the Up-Cycled Cloth Collective with Melanie Brummer.
I joined within about a year of lockdown. And from there, my inspiration and awareness of creative textile re-use has only grown.
Like a long, gentle, gathering stitch, Melanie draws us in and makes us something beautiful that we could not be without one another. She inspires, educates, guides, and frees us.
And the encouragement! The always-positive vibe on our pages carries through the magazine, the how-tos, the online course . . . everywhere. We see the world around each of us with new eyes. We share ideas with real people we meet, and they, too, are drawn in by Melanie’s efforts to heal our planet, express our creativity and spread positivity.
She leads us to all be better, do better, think before we buy, and unleash our imaginations.”
Moira Reynolds Bessette